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  • December 2, 2021
  • Article
  • Harvard Business Review (website)

Former Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly: Empowering Workers to Create ‘Magic’

By: Hubert Joly and Adi Ignatius
  • Format:Electronic
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Abstract

Hubert Joly was behind an amazing turnaround at Best Buy. While everybody was saying he should lay people off to solve the company’s problems, Joly instead listened to the people working for him and found solutions that didn’t involve people losing their jobs. Admitting you don’t have all the answers is a sign of strong leadership, he argues, and putting meaningful purpose at the heart of business is the only way for companies to move forward in hard times. Humans are not a resource, they are the creative engine of innovation and change that companies urgently need. And identifying individuals’ passions and motivations, and then freeing them up to pursue them, creates what Joly calls “human magic.”

Keywords

Purpose; Meaningful Work; Employee Empowerment; Mission and Purpose; Employees; Organizational Culture; Leadership

Citation

Joly, Hubert, and Adi Ignatius. "Former Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly: Empowering Workers to Create ‘Magic’." Harvard Business Review (website) (December 2, 2021). (Interview with Adi Ignatius, with embedded video.)
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About The Author

Hubert Joly

General Management
→More Publications

More from the Authors

    • May 2025
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    Fidji Simo: Growing the Pie at Instacart

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    Thrivent: From Insurance Agents to Financial Advisors

    By: Hubert Joly, Leonard A. Schlesinger and Tom Quinn
    • February 2025
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    Lessons from the Magnificent Seven and Other Remarkable High Growth Companies

    By: Hubert Joly and Kayti Stanley
More from the Authors
  • Fidji Simo: Growing the Pie at Instacart By: Hubert Joly, Leonard A. Schlesinger and James Barnett
  • Thrivent: From Insurance Agents to Financial Advisors By: Hubert Joly, Leonard A. Schlesinger and Tom Quinn
  • Lessons from the Magnificent Seven and Other Remarkable High Growth Companies By: Hubert Joly and Kayti Stanley
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